ascMcLaren EnthusiastsAn asc McLaren forum for ALL Mustang and Capri based cars modified by Automotive Speciality Corporation, a Division of American Sunroof Corporation. (a trademarked corporation) with no affilation to this site.

Hello all,
I joined asc enthusiasts a couple of weeks ago & have been rattling around in here trying to get my "capri-legs" before jumping in & writing in this welcome forum.
In mid-November I purchased #067, black 1985 ASC McLaren roadster in Kansas City, Kansas.
I don't know if the previous owner was a member here, but I did find a few fotos of it from back in 2005 on the Fotki pages.

The body seems to still be in pretty good shape with minimal dents & no rust. It appears to have been repainted (Black W/Gold Flakes), always looks dusty, the surface is rough to the touch & has runs and orange peel in some areas.
The interior is another story. The Recaro seats are a mess, the dash(by the center speaker) & the dash accent wood is cracked & peeling off, the console is missing a piece, the original radio has been replaced, there is some kind of alarm more or less hanging by a loose screw below the dash, the left door leather is streaked a lighter color from bleach or something, & the door locks no longer work.
It has Edelbrock valve covers on it & oil must be added through the tiny PCV valve hole?
It has single exhaust(which according to a note from Sandy) isn't correct for an 85?
All emblems except on the front grill have been removed, & the radio antenna is missing.
I have finally gotten most of the short cat/dog hair removed from the interior & the top with masking tape.
I did receive a new top(in the box) with the purchase, but the old top doesn't bother me much since I will probably only drive it with the top down most of the time(strictly a fair weather vehicle!)!
If any of you know any history on my new asc baby I sure would appreciate hearing from you!

Welcome to the group. Tons of great info here and great people.. Good to see some more Capris._________________Stan
1986 ASC Mclaren coupe #20 of 114.
Black with gray interior and stripes.
65,227 miles. Pop up sunroof car.
302 5 speed.

Thank you'ns for the welcome!
I can hardly wait for spring to get here so I can enjoy driving it.
Mine was shipped to the dealer(?) on 11/12/84 & is #67 so I guess it qualifies for an early one, & nope there is no hanger under there.

Will a dual exhaust system from a Fox Body Mustang fit it or were there modifications underneath at ASC that prevent such a swap?

I looked at a couple of Mustang conversions & passed on them to get this Capri cause I liked the flaired fenders, front end, & inset taillights better!_________________Favorite rides past & present:
http://vb.foureyedpride.com/album.php?u=13741

I will take your advice & not mess with the exhaust. I do want to try to keep the car as original as possible at this stage in its life. I was told that all 5.0 ASCs came with duals.

The 2 Mustang ASCs that I looked at to buy recently did have duals on them & they sure sounded nice!
My 2.3 Mustangs (I should say Mustang since I just gave my turbo 2.3 convert. to my grand-kids in Louisiana last week), sure don't sound anything like a nicely tuned 5.0 exhaling through a set of duals.
Maybe I need to look for an ASC Capri coupe so I have at least one car that sounds healthy.
Only problem is they are quick enough that "go fast" fever might overcome me again._________________Favorite rides past & present:
http://vb.foureyedpride.com/album.php?u=13741

Even my later 85 ASC doesn't really have duals. After the stock headers, it has a Y-pipe and a single catalytic converter. It splits back to dual right before the mufflers. Still has that V8 rumble though.

The Capri did't get true duals until 86. All the 85 exhaust parts for the 'dual' exhaust are unique for the year.

Even my later 85 ASC doesn't really have duals. After the stock headers, it has a Y-pipe and a single catalytic converter. It splits back to dual right before the mufflers. Still has that V8 rumble though.

The Capri did't get true duals until 86. All the 85 exhaust parts for the 'dual' exhaust are unique for the year.

I guess I had better be glad that I have what I have!

So all of those 85s that I see (photos) with an exhaust pipe on each side or on top of each other on the left, actually have that semi-dual setup that you describe?

That is almost as weird as my 5.0 Mountaineer which runs dual pipes all the way back to the rear axle then feeds them into a single muffler (after the half dozen cats up front?)
Talk about back pressure.
Ron_________________Favorite rides past & present:
http://vb.foureyedpride.com/album.php?u=13741

Mike H. I did not know that early build 1985s with V-8 had single exhust!!??
What was under 1984 302 V-8s ?? Single or Duals, and WHY was that?
Was it the same on the Mustangs? Can you expand upon that?_________________Sandy passed away in 2012. He will be forever missed.

At one point, the exhaust would have been a single exhaust with twin tail pipes together. Most likely in 84.

On another note, the 85 with an automatic would have CFI. CFI does not respond to dual exhaust upgrades. May make it run worse. The late 85 had headers into a single cat, dual mufflers and dual tips (fake dual exhaust)._________________Kevin Gold card MCA Judge for Fox Body
85 ASC Vert #612205
88 ASC Vert #542 20,550 miles
84 SVO 24,000 miles
03 Mach I 7,900 miles
89 LX Vert
14 CA Special
69 Mustang coupe
67 T-bird 47,000 miles
16 F250

Mike H. I did not know that early build 1985s with V-8 had single exhust!!??
What was under 1984 302 V-8s ?? Single or Duals, and WHY was that?
Was it the same on the Mustangs? Can you expand upon that?

84s all had single exhaust. The automatic cars got CFI in 84 which carried over to 85. The 84-85 manual cars were carbed and in 85 got the "semi" dual exhaust (along with headers, etc). The 85 automatic/CFI cars carried over MANY things from 1984, including the exhaust. However I believe somewhere in early 85, they did get headers and the semi-dual exhaust. I think this is why the hp rating changed for the automatic cars that year.

You wouldn't really know this info looking at the cars out there since most kids yank the single exhaust for the dual setup as soon as they get the car.

At one point, the exhaust would have been a single exhaust with twin tail pipes together. Most likely in 84.

On another note, the 85 with an automatic would have CFI. CFI does not respond to dual exhaust upgrades. May make it run worse. The late 85 had headers into a single cat, dual mufflers and dual tips (fake dual exhaust).

Boy, am I glad I asked the question about the dual exhaust. You guys really are a wealth of information on these great autos.
Since it was my first time to own an ASC and seeing photos of so many early ones with dual tailpipes I just assumed that they all originally came with duals.

Quote:

84s all had single exhaust. The automatic cars got CFI in 84 which carried over to 85. The 84-85 manual cars were carbed and in 85 got the "semi" dual exhaust (along with headers, etc). The 85 automatic/CFI cars carried over MANY things from 1984, including the exhaust. However I believe somewhere in early 85, they did get headers and the semi-dual exhaust. I think this is why the hp rating changed for the automatic cars that year.

You wouldn't really know this info looking at the cars out there since most kids yank the single exhaust for the dual setup as soon as they get the car.

-Mike"

The photos fooled me. I was getting ready to be one of those kids at "68" because I planned to return it to what I thought was original by installing duals on it.